Surgical removal and reduction of mechanical stimulation may prevent recurrent epulis

The records of 211 consecutive patients with a clinicopathologic diagnosis of fibrous gingival hyperplasia were retrieved. Patients who experienced relapse after surgical excision of the lesion were considered case patients (n = 30). All control patients were informed that there was no recurrence (n = 181). Logistic regression was used to evaluate the associations among different characteristics and the recurrence. Stratified analyses on sex was applied to identify the different associations.

Results:

• Binary logistic regression showed that patients with ulcer or mechanical stimulation (OR, 2.42; 95% CI, had a higher risk of experiencing recurrence.
• Stratified analysis of sex identified significant association in females
• No significant difference was observed in males (ulcer: OR, 2.44; 95% CI, 0.40 to 15.06; mechanical stimulation: OR, 1.62; 95% CI, 0.28 to 9.40).
• Male patients with larger epulides had fewer recurrence (OR, 0.13; 95% CI, 0.02 to 0.74).
• There was no significant difference in pathologic calcification between case and control patients (P > .05).

Patients with ulcer and mechanical stimulation may have a high risk of experiencing recurrent epulis. More attention should be paid to patients with ulcer and mechanical stimulation. Apart from complete surgical removal, it is important to remove local stimulation to prevent recurrence of these lesions.

Reference:

Kehui Xu, Yifei Zhu, Yuanyuan Li, Franklin R. Tay, Kai Jiao, Lina Niu, et al. Clinical and pathologic factors associated with the relapse of fibrous gingival hyperplasia. The Journal of the American Dental Association.